I am not a trained Chef: Ritu Dalmia

Celebrity Chef Ritu Dalmia who stole all the limelight after the publication of her book ‘Italian Khana’ from Random House has proved her acumen for long through the pure Italian food churned out from her classy restaurant Diva in Delhi and Vama in London, famous for their fresh gourmet cuisine. In an exclusive interview to Smita Mishra of Spicezee.com, Ritu speaks at length about her love affair with Italian Khana, her second homecoming to India and her journey to the starry heights of success. Why did you choose Italian cuisine as the subject of your book, why not Mexican, Thai or for that matter the more popular Chinese?

Because it is my preferred international cuisine and I have been eating it since I was very young Do you think Italian food has become so popular in India that people will actually buy your book, except for a chosen few? I don’t think you should underestimate Indians, and lets face it is these chosen few in metros and smaller cities is a very large number you are talking about. Today Indians are traveling lot more than before and they want to recreate the same meal experience they had on their travels, trying different food, and especially Italian has come a long long way You belong to a Marwari family. How did your family react when you decided to train as a chef? I am not a trained chef; I cook out of my instincts. Actually my family was a bit surprised but my mother has always supported me, right from my first restaurant 15 years ago. Tell me, do Italian food lovers in India really know anything beyond pasta and pizza? All my restaurants are considerably full, so I guess they do know far more than pizza and pasta. (laughs) Is Italian food in any remote way similar to Indian Khana? No it would be wrong to say that, but they both have something which appeals to Indian taste buds. In fact I had once read a very good article by Vikram Doctor in Eco Times Bombay on this subject. You said somewhere that it is easier to make Spaghetti than Aloo Dum, is it because you know more Italian cooking than Indian or is it really so? I have run both India restaurants as well as Italian, so it would be unfair to say I know more Italian than Indian. But will you be able to make any Indian dish in less than 10 minutes? Tell us something about the journey from Mezzaluna to Diva? Well it has been a journey full of fun. Mezzaluna gave me the passion for food, and Vama, London taught me how to run a restaurant professionally, and this six year old journey ended in a perfect mix of two- Diva. Vama at London was a roaring success. So what made you look towards India and how did Diva happen? Vama still is a roaring success and I am still very proud of it. But yes I missed India, I missed some one cooking my breakfast, doing my laundry, I missed the sun, and most important I missed my family and friends.. So coming back to India was purely a personal decision and not a commercial one. I did not know what I would do when I came back, Diva came up few months later. Any more books or restaurants in the pipeline? Nothing at the moment. Already too much is happening in my life. But then I should never say that as I have done everything in my life – on the spur of moment. What is the most satisfying thing in this whole business of food? I think what I love the most about this business is that I enjoy it so much that I feel guilty to call it work. I have met some of the nicest people through my work, and when you receive a bunch flowers saying what superb evening they had it does wonders for my soul. Apart from your own restaurant, which are your favourite eating spots? In Delhi I love to go for Sunday lunch at China Kitchen. Swagath, Andhra Bhavan, and The Chinese at Connought Place. A ‘million dollar’ tip to the beginners in Italian cooking? Only use the freshest ingredients and everything else will be a cakewalk… For Ritu’s favourite recipes click here »